Cleveland

Understand

Cleveland is named after Moses Cleaveland, a veteran of the American War of Independence and distant relative of U.S. President Grover Cleveland, who surveyed the area and founded the city in 1796. Cleveland is the urban center of Northeast Ohio, with 363,000 people in 2020. It is the center of the 15th largest combined metropolitan area in the United States. From 1890 until 1970, Cleveland was ranked as one of the 10 largest cities in the U.S. Like most U.S. cities, Cleveland began to lose population to suburban areas in the 1960s and 1970s. However, in the mid-1980s, Cleveland earned the nickname the "Comeback City" as the urban core experienced a dramatic revitalization process that continues today. As its "comeback" has continued, the official moniker is now the New American City as Cleveland has rightfully earned the reputation as a model of effective public-private partnership for urban planning. Despite the common perception that Cleveland is an industrial town, just beyond the automotive and steel plants, a clean and beautiful downtown rises at the mouth of the Cuyahoga River on the southern shore of Lake Erie (often marveled over by visitors who are surprised you can't see the other side, i.e., Canada). Like other cities in the so-called "rust belt", Cleveland has endured growing pains as it makes its transition from a manufacturing-based economy. While Cleveland continues to play a leading role in building the U.S. industrial base, it has also developed economic prowess in the fields of health care, law, finance, insurance, real estate development, and professional services. In fact, Cleveland's economy frequently ranks amongst the most diverse and most dynamic in the USA. Cleveland's long history of industrial wealth has left it chock full of cultural riches as well as the beginnings of a "sustainable city" movement. Serving as a global model for urban rebirth, Cleveland has been named one of the top 10 international visitor hotspots by Travel and Leisure magazine.

Climate

Cleveland experiences four seasons, with vibrant spring blossoms, hot humid summers, colorful autumns, and frigid winters.

July, on average, is the warmest month with a mean temperature of 71.9 °F (22.2 °C); however, Cleveland summers often experience temperatures in the high 80s to low 90s °F (low 30s °C) with relatively high humidity. In heat index terms factoring in humidity, average summer heat indices are around 84 °F (29 °C) during the day and 69 °F (21 °C), and some exceptionally hot and sweltering summer days can see heat indices upwards of or exceeding 96 °F

Getting there

By plane

1 Cleveland Hopkins International Airport (CLE IATA), ☏ +1 216-265-6030. 13 mi (21 km) southwest of Downtown. The RTA Red Line Rapid Transit provides frequent and fast rail service from the airport to downtown. $2.50. (updated Jul 2019) 2 Burke Lakefront Airport (BKL IATA), 1501 N Marginal Rd. A small airport downtown right on the shore of Lake Erie that handles private jet, business, and general aviation traffic. Ultimate Air Shuttle offers twice daily flights to Cincinnati from Burke. (updated Jul 2019) 3 Akron-Canton Airport (CAK IATA). 50 mi (80 km) south of Cleveland in Akron. Served by most major U.S. airlines. (updated Jul 2019) 4 Cuyahoga County Airport (CGF IATA) (In northeastern Cuyahoga County.). Serves private planes as a General aviation airport. (updated Jul 2019)

By car Four two-digit interstate highways serve Cleveland:

Interstate 71 runs primarily west before heading due south into the suburbs, and most directly connects downtown to Cleveland Hopkins International Airport (via Ohio 237), the lower west suburbs (via I-480), the southwest suburbs, and eventually the state capital of Columbus. The curved section of I-71 that runs between W 25th Street and I-90/490 is referred to as the Metro Curve, due to its proximity to MetroHealth Medical Center. Interstate 77, shown on maps as the Willow Freeway is Cleveland's oldest freeway, and heads due south from the Innerbelt along the east side of the Cuyahoga Valley and most directly connects downtown to the south suburbs, southeast suburbs (via I-480), Ohio Turnpike (I-80), and the city of Akron. The stack interchange at I-480 is sometimes referred to as The Cloverleaf, although the actual cloverleaf is located at the junction of Brecksville Road and Granger Road, which is just west of the later extension of the Willow Freeway. Interstate 80/Ohio Turnpike is a toll road that connects the Greater Cleveland with Toledo to the west, and Youngstown and Pittsburgh to the east. Access to the city and its suburbs is from I-90, I-480 Eastbound, I-71, I-77, Ohio 8, and I-480 Westbound. Interstate 90 connects the two sides (the terms "East Side" and "West Side" have deep root in defining this region) of Cleveland, and is the northern terminus for I-71 and I-77. I-90 separates from the Ohio Turnpike just west of Elyria and joins with Ohio 2 until Ohio 2 separates at Detroit Road in the west side suburb of Rocky River. I-90 then proceeds to I-71, I-490, and the Jennings Freeway (Ohio 176) in the Tremont neighborhood, and over the Innerbelt Bridge into downtown; from this confluence of fre

Getting around

By car Cleveland might be one of the easiest cities in the world to navigate. There are almost no one-way streets, because the city was planned to have "European Avenues" (which resulted in the foresight to make them broad enough for vehicular transportation that couldn't have been imagined in the late 1700s). Traffic is generally not a problem relative to other major U.S. metro areas. Throughout the downtown area, purple signs direct visitors to let you know where you are and what district you are in. The streets that run north-south are numbered, except for Ontario Street (the north-south street bisecting Public Square). Numbered streets are named "West", west of Ontario and "East", east of Ontario. (Broadview Road becomes the primary geographic boundary between 'East' and 'West' addresses to the south of the city.) The major east-west streets are generally named as "avenues". Finding an address is simple as well. Numbers on north-south streets increase as you head south from Lake Erie, numbers on east-west streets increase as you head away from downtown and coincide with the numbered streets (i.e. 6500 Detroit Ave is located at the corner of Detroit Ave and W 65th St). Odd addresses on north-south streets are for buildings on the east side of the street, and even addresses are on the west side; on the west side of Cleveland, odd addresses on east-west streets are located on the south side of the street, while even addresses are on the north side—the reverse is true for east-west streets on the east side of Cleveland. This addressing scheme continues into most of the suburbs (some exceptions include Berea and Bedford) and even most cities and townships in Lake and Lorain Counties. Most of the city is laid out in grids and has very clear signage enabling you to easily know where you are. Throughout the area, signs are thoroughly placed to indicate the route to the nearest major freeway, making the city extremely visitor-friendly! Cleveland rush hours (7AM-9AM; 4PM-6:30PM in the afternoon) are light compared to many metropolitan areas, with traffic still moving near posted speed limits throughout most of the area. Some places notorious for slow or stop and go traffic are: Morning:

I-71 Northbound from W 25th St into Downtown and from Bagley Rd to I-480 I-77 Northbound from I-490 into Downtown and from the Ohio Turnpike to I-480 I-90 Eastbound from W 25th St into Downtown I-90 Westbound from E 55th St into Downtown I-271 Northbound approaching I-480 I-480 Eastbound from the Jennings Freeway (Ohio 176) to I-77 and approaching I-271 Jennings Freeway

See

Most attractions in Cleveland are Downtown. These include the Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland Museum of Natural History, and the Cleveland Botanical Gardens, all in and around the University Circle neighborhood. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame & Museum, Great Lakes Science Center, and the Steamship William G. Mather Maritime Museum, are all on the lakefront. Churches: Particularly visit the Tremont district in West Side (where the movie The Deer Hunter was filmed) and the Church Square district along Euclid Avenue between Downtown and University Circle (where you can see a broad sampling of houses of prayer, many of which are used by their second or third generations of faith). There are also several monumental churches in near east side suburbs of Cleveland Heights and Shaker Heights along Cedar Road, Fairmount and Shaker Boulevards.

Do

Sports Enjoy a game with the world's best sports fans. Cleveland is home to the second longest span of sold out baseball games (5 consecutive seasons in the late 1990s), the largest American League baseball attendance (72,086 on 8/9/1981) and the birthplace of Monday Night Football (9/21/1970). But given its storied sports past coupled with its weathered but dedicated fan base (ESPN named Cleveland the "Most Tortured Sports City"), terms like The Drive, The Fumble, The Shot, The Move, The Decision, 2 More Outs will ring in the ears of Cleveland sports fans for generations to come. After the Cavaliers finally ended the city's half-century long championship drought in 2016, The Block will also ring in fans' ears, but with a far happier note. Win or lose, Clevelanders (obviously) just love sports.

Outdoors No "mistake" about it! - Lake Erie. The shallowest and warmest Great Lake (with the most vibrant fishery) defines Cleveland's northern border and provides many opportunities for boating, fishing, swimming and walks. Cleveland boasts more miles of shoreline than any other city in the world, providing enjoyment from before Memorial Day to past Labor Day for boaters, fishermen and beach bums. Sailers, boaters, waverunners and jet skiers enjoy the lake with marinas, piers and boat launches available all along America's North Coast. Fishing is popular more than three seasons of the year with healthy populations of Walleye and Perch in Lake Erie. In the late fall and early winter, anglers pursue steelhead trout in the many rivers feeding Lake Erie up through Northeast Ohio and into Pennsylvania and Western New York. Historically nicknamed the "Forest City" (due to a famous description of a highly sophisticated society amid a heavily forested environment in Alexis DeTocqueville's "Democracy in America" (1831)), Cleveland is a great place for outdoor activities. USA Today ranked Cleveland among the 10 best big cities for hiking. If you think Cleveland is just a "rust belt" city, get out to the nearest Cleveland Metropark. The parks form an Emerald Necklace around the Cleveland metropolitan area, so no matter which direction you go from downtown, you're headed toward a park. Biking, horseback riding, jogging and rollerblading are easily accommodated by the miles of trails (paved and unpaved) encircling Cuyahoga County. In the winter, visitors can cross country ski these same trails. Sitting upon the foothills of the Allegheny Mountains, Cleveland also provides downhill skiers with slopes throughout the area.

A river winds through it. Boaters, rowing crews,

Buy

Upscale Shoppers have been flocking to Northeast Ohio since the development of several lifestyle centers have attracted upscale retailers. On the East Side, Legacy Village (in Lyndhurst) has been added to Cleveland's fashion district along Cedar Road (which includes Beachwood Place and La Place in Beachwood). Nearby, Eton Collection (on Chagrin Boulevard in Woodmere) provides even more upscale options for shopping and dining. On the West Side, Crocker Park (in Westlake) provides a mixed-use "new town" environment with upscale shopping.

Artwork & crafts Cleveland's active art community has galleries throughout the area with larger concentrations in Tremont, Ohio City (just across the Cuyahoga River from downtown), and Little Italy. Unique boutiques abound in the inner ring suburbs of Cleveland Heights, Shaker Heights and Lakewood. New England charm and "mom-and-pop" shops can be found along the public squares of Western Reserve towns (settled as the Connecticut Western Reserve), including Chagrin Falls, Hudson, Olmsted Falls, Willoughby, Medina, Chardon and Painesville.

Groceries and other basics The major supermarket chains in the Cleveland area are Giant Eagle, Dave's, Heinen's, Aldi, Whole Foods Market, and Trader Joe's. In addition the nation's two largest discount store chains Walmart and Target each have a store in Cleveland as well. The CVS and Walgreens drug store chains are also ubiquitous throughout Cleveland with many locations open twenty four hours a day.

Eat

Cleveland is host to a wide variety of restaurants and is culinarily much more diverse than an outsider might suspect in the Midwest drawing on large enclaves of ethnic neighborhoods and immigration (Ohio City, Slavic Village, Parma, Hough, Little Italy, Chinatown and others). Certainly, Eastern European food and Soul food are big in a city where Hungarians, Slavs, Poles, Czechs, Bohemians and Southern African Americans were drawn to the steel and automotive industries in the late 19th and early 20th centuries; however, recent emigres have spiced up the mix, adding many more influences including Indian, Chinese, Southeast Asian, Puerto Rican and Central American, Middle Eastern and Mediterranean. In the mid-1990s Cleveland was in step with the resurgence of the restaurant industry, and has many restaurants on-par with their larger-city counterparts, many of which are located in the Historic Warehouse District, the Flats, Ohio City, Tremont, the Gateway Neighborhood and along the Restaurant Row in the East Side suburbs. In fact, the area boasts of 6 AAA Four Diamond restaurants, the most between New York and Chicago. Today's Cleveland goes beyond your grandfather's sausage and pierogi steel town. Most restaurants in Cleveland are closed on Sunday and many have reduced hours or are closed on Monday. Cleveland has two varieties of spicy mustard that are found at sports games and sports pubs, Stadium and Bertmans. Local fans are very opinionated about which one is best, similar to how Americans generally prefer either Coke or Pepsi.

Drink & nightlife

There are plenty of bars in Cleveland - most are located Downtown. However, many are closed on Sundays and some have reduced hours or are closed on Mondays.

1 Great Lakes Brewing Company. The restaurant is in the Ohio City district of Cleveland. The microbrews are available at many bars, restaurants, grocery stores, and even gas stations. The restaurant has gunshots in its walls from Eliot Ness, the former Cleveland Chief of Police, and the FBI man who busted the mob in the early 20th century. (updated Nov 2018)

Sleep

Hotels are mostly located Downtown, with a few additional East Side options around University Circle, and some properties near the airport on the far West Side. The only hostel in the city is in Ohio City on the West Side. Neighboring suburbs also provide numerous lodging choices.

Go next

Not amused by nature? If you prefer to step up the pace, Northeast Ohio offers world-class amusement parks including Cedar Point (1 hour drive west to Sandusky) and Memphis Kiddie Park (in Brooklyn, Ohio), a small but fun park for the little ones (toddlers to pre-teens). Cuyahoga Valley National Park. Located south of Cleveland, this park follows the course of the Cuyahoga River and the historic Ohio & Erie Canal between Cleveland and Akron. A number of older buildings are preserved here. The Cuyahoga Scenic Railroad, with train cars from the 1940s and 1950s also runs through the park. Pick up the train in Valley View near Thornburg Station (8111 Rockside Rd), a mixed-use retail, restaurant and office complex sitting between the river and canal. North Coast Beaches. Along the southern shore of Lake Erie are a large number of public beaches. The largest natural sand beach in Ohio, Headlands Beach State Park, is located east of Cleveland, in Mentor. Edgewater Park, located just west of downtown Cleveland, includes a large beach. Many other beaches are available throughout Northeast Ohio, including Huntington Beach, Euclid Beach and Fairport Harbor. Lake Erie Islands. Located west of Cleveland, a group of picturesque and festive islands in Lake Erie are accessible via ferry. In addition to several Ohio State Parks located on the islands, there is plenty to do including wineries, restaurants, bars, marinas and beaches. Hall of Fame Cycle. Tourists can plan visits to the Rock Hall, Inventure Place (the National Inventors Hall of Fame in Akron) and the Pro Football Hall of Fame (in Canton). Historic Downtown Painesville. Visit quaint Painesville for specialty shops, ethnic restaurants, relaxing spas, college nightlife from nearby Lake Erie College, historic homes, and bed and breakfasts. Sandusky. Sandusky is home to Cedar Point, the world's largest amusement park, and Kalahari Resorts, a massive water park. Also home to Ghostly Manor, a top rated year-round haunted house, a Carousel Museum, and a historic downtown.